Election Day Extravaganza

Yesterday was an amazing day! Here are our photos from an early morning of election day volunteering in Gary, Indiana and a late night of celebrating in Grant Park. 

Enjoy!

If you would like to see the captions for these photos, mouse over the photo box and click on the bubble in the lower left corner. 

The Fierce Urgency of 1 Week From Now

It has been 20 months and there are only 6 days left.

This week I have been reflecting upon the presidential election and eagerly anticipating November 4^th. Personally, this journey has been one filled with passion and a great deal of learning. Allow me to be nostalgic for just a moment…

In November of 2004, Deanna, Melissa and I celebrated Barack Obama’s Illinois Senate seat win in the basement of the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Chicago. The room was filled with excitement, and when Deanna and I went to congratulate this young, new Senator she said to him, “Senator Obama, you are going to be the next President!” Upon which I smacked her on the back and said “Dee, he just got elected, that is crazy.” Yeah, we will be telling our Grandkids that story someday!

In February of 2007, I celebrated Barack’s announcement that he was entering the Presidential race.  Shortly thereafter, Chad, Melissa and I attended a small rally in Union Station where Barack, Michelle, and Ari Gold talked casually about their vision for the upcoming campaign. What impressed me then, and continues to impress me now, is that the vision Barack Obama spoke of when he ran for Senate in 2004, when he addressed us in Union Station in 2007, and today is exactly the same: Inspiring Renewed Hope in our Communities & Enacting Positive Change. That vision had me at Hello.

I put up my Obama 08 sign in the front of our condo so long ago that now it is faded from the sun.  I watched every single debate- from the time when there were 10 people on stage to when there were only two. I laughed at the fantastic Tina Fey spoofs on SNL, the brilliantly edited hypocrisy on The Daily Show, and the candidate’s roasts at the Alfred E Smith dinner. I cried the first time that I watched the “Yes We Can” video mash-up, and when Michelle Obama gave her heartfelt speech during the DNC. I cringed at every hateful email forward and mailer, and each time that McCain said “my friends” and Sarah Palin winked at me. I logged hours of reading and writing about the issues; and during that time I realized my passion for spreading the truth and educating people on how to be well informed voters. Finally, I experienced a profound sense of belonging at Google when our leaders spoke out about social issues, get out the vote efforts, and supporting employees taking time off work to get involved in political campaigns.

What I observed in the past 20 months is a movement of inspiration and involvement that I find truly awesome. Yesterday, I had an experience that further underscored my admiration for this movement. I spoke on the phone with a man who is organizing a Get Out The Vote effort in Northern Indiana on election day. This man is a school teacher- who between classes, at night, and on the weekends is running a field office for Barack Obama in Indiana. His enthusiasm was palatable over the phone even as the noise of the end of the school day was evident in the background. He told me that last weekend his office had 80 volunteers who knocked on 5,000 doors. Immediately my brain started to multiply those numbers by hundreds of field offices and volunteers across Indiana and in others states. In that moment the fierce urgency of a Barack Obama victory struck me.

People who have never voted before are registered and voting early. Young people who have typically thought that politics were “uncool” are now talking to their parents and grandparents about Barack Obama and Climate Change. The Barack Obama campaign has managed to make getting involved cool. This in turn is making community service cool, environmental efforts cool, voting cool…you get the point. What has John McCain’s campaign made cool? Being a bully. And isn’t that what Washington and politics has always been about- the biggest bullies getting what they want?

A Barack Obama victory is fiercely urgent because I fear that a defeat would deflate this amazing 20-month long surge of Americans finally caring. A defeat would discourage people from getting involved in politics in the future and create an even larger divide between the classes and the races in our country. I also fear that a Barack Obama defeat would cause the international community to be affirmed in their misconceptions that Americans are a bunch of racist, egocentric, country-folk.  But the concept of the Fierce Urgency of Now is not about acting on fear; it is about acting on hope and believing in the greater good of people and potential of our country. 

So for the next 6 days, I will continue to Hope. 

Happy Halloween!

I just loved how this video brings together the Halloween tradition of pumpkin carving and the passion that people are feeling for the 

upcoming election! Check out yeswecarve.com for more fun pumpkin pictures. 

Enjoy!

Tackling a New Blog Post

There are many topics that I have been wanting to write about since my last post, but I just haven't had the time to blog lately. I suppose that Facebook, Twitter and IM  are somewhat to blame. My daily communication vehicles keep getting faster and faster, so the thought of sitting down to write a few paragraphs in my blog felt like slowing down to a crawl.  I can't even imagine what it would feel like to sit down and hand write a letter! 

Ironically, one of the things that I have been doing over the last 2 weeks is participating in a number of lectures, readings, and one-on-one discussions in an attempt to learn how to slow down, focus and prioritize. It started as an exercise to help me understand how to further develop my leadership skills but it has evolved into so much more. Tuesday I took a yoga class where part of the practice focused on setting intentions and meditating on those intentions. Thursday I attended a lecture on eating for energy which also touched on "primary foods" in your life such as positive relationships and intellectual stimulation which give you energy. It has been very interesting to say the least, and has caused me to think about many things that I would like to do both in the long and the short term. Never fear, when I reach the height of my enlightenment, I will share my learnings. :-)

Also in the last few weeks, I continued to immerse myself in the saga that is this election, and I have been continuously entertained. I waged a war against the pet insurance industry, who has proven to be completely worthless in the treatment of Roscoe's condition. Finally, on a much more positive note, I traveled with Chad and my friends to New England for Kori and Mike's beautiful wedding weekend. 

Now that you got the Cliff's Notes overview, I promise to post photos from New England as soon as I have a chance to organize them online and create something that does justice to the beauty of the weekend. I also promise to unabashedly rant at some time about how the Pet Insurance company is royally screwing us in reimbursement for Roscoe's Polycythemia treatment plan. Until then, to keep my loyal readers (all 3 of you) satisfied, I have posted below two highly entertaining election-related videos that were shared with me today. They are not what you think, so watch them until the end- I promise that you will have a great laugh. Finally, don't forget to get out there and vote...or else! :-)

5 Friends

Google teams with film stars to encourage people to get out, register and vote. This makes me very happy.

Enjoy!

I'm hoping that this post registers...

October 6 is the last day to register to vote in the 2008 Presidential Election. This critical date is just 1 week away, so now is the time to make sure that you and everyone that you know is registered to vote. In many states early voting is available, and in every state you can vote absentee. If you have any questions about how to register or where to vote I am absolutely willing to help you figure it out, so please don't hesitate to ask.

To me, this is a matter of encouraging everyone to exercise this meaningful right that we have as American citizens. It is not a matter of trying to get only those who are going to vote for my candidate of choice out to the polls. One of my favorite parts about this past primary season was that voter turnout records were being broken across the nation. No matter what happens on November 4, we are going to have a historical election. Wouldn't it be great if we also accomplished the highest ever voter turnout in our nations' history?

To help you get ready for November 4th here are a few extremely helpful resources: 

• Find non-partisan voter registration information for every state here. 
  
• Register for the easy to digest and completely non-partisan Factcheck.org email alerts here.
  

Ready for this Reality TV Show to have its Season Finale!

On that fateful Friday in August when John McCain announced to the country that his running mate would be Sarah Palin, I began to liken his campaign to a reality TV show.

I continue to stand firm in my belief that choosing no pun intended Palin- while it may have been an excellent political strategic move- was irresponsible and dangerous and I don’t understand why Americans are not more insulted. Instead many are captivated by her glasses, her children, and her affinity for lipstick. She is like a cross between Super Nanny and Omarosa.  It is obvious that she was chosen to help McCain win, rather than because she is a capable and prepared to be Vice President.  In reality TV we would have dramatic background music and cast members in small rooms at odd camera angles calling McCain out on this, and in the next elimination ceremony he would be in the bottom 2.

Instead, our reality is that we have had only 3 opportunities to hear Palin speak unscripted since her nomination. Yesterday, in an interview with Katie Couric which I highly encourage you to watch here, Palin was pushed for details on two relevant and fair questions: 1. Give  examples on how McCain has been a maverick and pushed for more corporate regulations in his 26 years in the Senate? 2. Explain how McCain’s campaign manager receiving pay checks from Freddie Mac is not a conflict of interest? Palin overtly stumbled and was unable to produce an answer. Actually, during the Freddie Mac question she kindof reminded me of Miss South Carolina talking about Maps and The Iraq. Meanwhile over at the UN , Palin was paraded in and out of photo ops with world leaders so that the campaign could put virtual stamps in her empty passport. Stay tuned, in the next episode you’ll have photos of Palin attending Econ 101 classes in the local University classroom.

This woman is unfit to be in this race! She is the pitchy singer that stays on American Idol for way too many weeks, the clunky dancer who keeps squeaking by on Dancing with the Stars, and the sloppy designer who is still on Project Runway.

Finally this week, in the midst of an economic plot twist "The fundamentals of our economy are strong. Wait, I mean we are in the midst of a financial meltdown and we must stop everything and take action now!" McCain and his co-stars make the melodramatic announcement that they are suspending the campaign and not attending the first debate unless the extremely complex and serious bailout issues are resolved in the next 48 hours.  This desperate move is nothing short of a 3 year old stating stubbornly, “I am not going to play unless I can be the Super Hero!” I hope that the American people will participate in a collective eye roll and go back to judiciously evaluating these candidates and how they stand on the issues in preparation for the big results show on Nov 4.  

Oh, and one last thing, Barack Obama, will you accept this rose?

What's the Plan, Stan?

We can all agree that an economic crisis is occuring in our country. 

I believe that the timing of this crisis is paramount- because we are actually in a position where we can have an impact on how it will be addressed.

This 2 minute video summarizes Barack Obama's economic plan, and the entire plan has been made public at the link below.

 

Read the entire plan here.

49 Days!

With only 49 days remaining until the critical 2008 Presidential Election, I implore you to become engaged in the dialog and seek out the facts. My favorite resource for the facts is the Factcheck.org email subscription. 1-3 times a week, they will send me an short email with a bulleted list of information. This email dispells the spin from current commercials, interviews, and false emails circling over the internet. It is extremely easy to digest and to forward on to others. 

Please click here to subscribe. If it is the only thing that you read between now and November 4th you will be a well-informed voter. 

The Dirty Spread of...Facts

As I have said many times already during this election, I am on a personal mission to educate people on how to find out the facts. Below is a great article from the AP which highlights some areas where the facts weren't all that clear last night.

Attacks, praise stretch truth at GOP convention

By JIM KUHNHENN, Associated Press Writer Wed Sep 3, 11:48 pm ET

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her Republican supporters held back little Wednesday as they issued dismissive attacks on Barack Obama and flattering praise on her credentials to be vice president. In some cases, the reproach and the praise stretched the truth.

Some examples:

PALIN: "I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending ... and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere."

THE FACTS: As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the largest per-capita request in the nation. While Palin notes she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere."

PALIN: "There is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform — not even in the state senate."

THE FACTS: Compared to McCain and his two decades in the Senate, Obama does have a more meager record. But he has worked with Republicans to pass legislation that expanded efforts to intercept illegal shipments of weapons of mass destruction and to help destroy conventional weapons stockpiles. The legislation became law last year. To demean that accomplishment would be to also demean the work of Republican Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, a respected foreign policy voice in the Senate. In Illinois, he was the leader on two big, contentious measures in Illinois: studying racial profiling by police and requiring recordings of interrogations in potential death penalty cases. He also successfully co-sponsored major ethics reform legislation.

PALIN: "The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

THE FACTS: The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's plan would increase after-tax income for middle-income taxpayers by about 5 percent by 2012, or nearly $2,200 annually. McCain's plan, which cuts taxes across all income levels, would raise after tax-income for middle-income taxpayers by 3 percent, the center concluded.

Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

MCCAIN: "She's been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America's energy supply ... She's responsible for 20 percent of the nation's energy supply. I'm entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America," he said in an interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson.

THE FACTS: McCain's phrasing exaggerates both claims. Palin is governor of a state that ranks second nationally in crude oil production, but she's no more "responsible" for that resource than President Bush was when he was governor of Texas, another oil-producing state. In fact, her primary power is the ability to tax oil, which she did in concert with the Alaska Legislature. And where Alaska is the largest state in America, McCain could as easily have called it the 47th largest state — by population.

MCCAIN: "She's the commander of the Alaska National Guard. ... She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities," he said on ABC.

THE FACTS: While governors are in charge of their state guard units, that authority ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. When guard units are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, they assume those duties under "federal status," which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors. Alaska's national guard units have a total of about 4,200 personnel, among the smallest of state guard organizations.

FORMER ARKANSAS GOV. MIKE HUCKABEE: Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

THE FACTS: A whopper. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor's election, and got 909 in her 1999 re-election race, for a total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes in 23 states and the District of Columbia where he was on the ballot during the 2008 presidential primaries.

FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOV. MITT ROMNEY: "We need change, all right — change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington — throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin."

THE FACTS: A Back-to-the-Future moment. George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. Only since January 2007 have Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate.